The Graduate Student Assembly Proudly Presents: The 22°d Annual Research Symposiulll and Exposition Wednesday, March 29, 2006 Multipurpose Room, Graduate Life Center Sponsors: 1. Office of the Provost 2. College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences 3. College of Natural Resources 4. College of Science 5. College of Agriculture and Life Sciences 6. Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine Preface & Acknowledgements The Research Symposium and Exposition of Virginia Tech is a forum that provides graduate and undergraduate students a unique opportunity to showcase their scholarly pursuits and achievements in their respective academic fields. The symposium is intended to stimulate interaction and exchange of ideas among faculty, staff and students from a variety of disciplines and backgrounds. This year's Symposium has three entry formats that allow all students of Virginia Tech to present in the medium that is appropriate for their work. The three entry formats are: • Poster Presentation • Visual Presentation • Lecture, Speech or Performance Presentation Participants were able to choose from seven entry categories for the 2006 Research Symposium: • Advanced Undergraduate • Agriculture and Animal Sciences • Arts, Architecture and Urban Studies • Engineering • Natural and Biological Sciences • Physical Sciences • Social Sciences and Humanities I would like to congratulate all of the participants for their outstanding accomplishments and willingness to share their work with the Virginia Tech community. All of the research presented is truly impressive and serves as a testimony to the high caliber of academic and research programs at Virginia Tech. There are many people to thank for their efforts and hard work in organizing and running this event. I especially want to thank our 28 judges. A record number of one-hundred thirty-seven entries were received this year and without such a generous show of support from our faculty judging this number of entries would have been a monumental task. Likewise, a successful fund raising campaign allowed for three cash prizes in each of the seven entry categories. We would like to thank the Provost Office for their support for the fifth year in a row. We would also like to thank our other sponsors: College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, College of Natural Resources, College of Science, College of Agriculture and Life Science and Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. Without the support of our sponsors we would not be able to put on such a high-caliber event. I would also like to thank Roberto Mayorga and Monika Gibson of the Graduate School whose patience and support were invaluable to making this event a success. I also acknowledge help from Graduate Student Assembly Executive Board: Jamie Kalista, Linsey Barker, Swamy Siddaramappa, Jory Ruscio, and Lachelle Waller. Finally I would like to thank Paula Williams for keeping me on track all semester! Thank you to everyone who helped make this year's symposium a success .. It has been a pleasure to serve as a chairperson of this year's Research Symposium Laura Freeman Chair, 22ndAnnual Research Symposium and Exposition of Virginia Tech 1 Table of Contents Research Symposium Schedule & Lecture Presentation Schedule 3 Abstracts 4 • Advance Undergraduate 4 • Agriculture and Animal Sciences 11 • Arts, Architecture and Urban Studies 20 • Engineering 22 • Natural and Biological Sciences 28 • Physical Sciences 40 • Social Sciences and Humanities 42 * In abstracts indicates Symposium Participant 2 22°d Annual Research Symposium Schedule 7:00 AM Early Setup 8:00 AM Breakfast Served 10:00 AM Symposium/Judging Begins 12:30 PM Lunch Served 4:00 PM Symposium/Judging Ends Lecture Presentation Schedule Time Participant 10:00 Ashley Shew 10:10 Asli Sahin 10:40 Mohannad G.AL-Saghir 10:50 Jose M Rullan 11:00 Jared Peatman 11:10 Matthew Krogh 11:20 Leonard Lanier 11:30 Kamau Rucker 11:40 Joshua Sweeney 11:50 Seung-Hui cho 12:00 Julia Best 12:40 Sarah DuRant 1:00 Tugrul Keskin 1:10 Marissa Duff 1:50 Manisha Singal 2:00 Jiyun Wu 2:10 Virginia Rothwell 2:20 KyuhoLee 2:30 Michael Ferranti 2:40 Ana R. Constantinescu 3 Advanced Undergraduate #1 Nutritional and Economic Impacts of a Pasture Based Beef System Morgan Lindsay Allen*, Scott Sink Agriculture and Applied Economics Farmers in the beef industry primarily have small beef operations, less than 50 cows thus, limiting net returns. Small scale beef producers are not cost competitive with large more efficient feed lot production systems. By developing forage systems that seek to match seasonal forage supply to animal demand, farmers can increase economic benefits. Through these systems, producers can control many aspects of forage and pasture management to develop an efficient pasture-based beef production system. The success of a forage-based beef system will depend primarily on product quality, market acceptance, and the willingness of consumers to pay premium prices for the product. This research project will look at the economic feasibility of farmers optimizing the nutrients of their forage systems to produce pasture-based beef to market to consumers in niche markets. #2 Structural Evolution of the Sauratown Mountain Quartzite, Evidence for Polyphase Deformation and Shearing. Paul Michael Betka*, Micah J. Jessup, Rick D. Law Geosciences Sauratown quartzites represent a continental margin sedimentary package that was deposited on top of Mesoproterozoic (1.2Ga) schist and gneisses and then transported westward as part of the Blue Ridge-Piedmont thrust sheet. Relationships between overprinting, crenulation cleavage, and stretching lineations record three phases of deformation (Dl-D3). Isoclinal recumbent folds (Fl) trend east-west and are the earliest generation of folding. F 1 folds are overprinted during D2 by southeast vergent, shallowly plunging open F2 folds. Stretching lineations are prevalent throughout the outcrop and are sub-parallel to the orogen. Previous work suggests that these stretching lineations (Ll and L2) were generated during Dl and D2 and then rotated to their current orogen parallel orientations by later warping of the anticlinorium. However, it is possible that these stretching lineations were rotated to their current orientations by oblique convergence or shearing. Stretching lineations common in highly strained quartz veins are sub-parallel to the prominent lineation throughout the outcrop indicating that crystal plastic processes accommodated some deformation during D3. These lineations (L3) record NE-SW extension when LI and L2 were rotated into parallelism with L3. Together this evidence suggests that two phases of deformation in the Sauratown quartzites culminated in final phase of orogen-parallel extension. #3 Career Interest in Agriculture of the 2004 Class of the Virginia Governor's School for Agriculture Catherine Byers*, Ryan G. Anderson, John Cannon Agricultural and Extension Education The Virginia Summer Governor's Schoo\ for Agriculture (VGSA) has been developed as an agricultural literacy tool by the Virginia Department of Education, Virginia Farm Bureau, Virginia Agri-Business Council, and Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of the VGSA and demographics on the career interests in agriculture held by students of the 2004 school. The mission of the school is to provide hands-on, cutting-edge scientific and academic instruction to future leaders and scientists to develop their understanding of the scope, opportunities, challenges, and both academic and scientific rigor of the broad fields of agriculture and natural resources. Each student who attends VGSA is required to select a "major". The majors include agricultural economics, animal science, food science and nutrition, natural resources, plant science, and veterinary medicine. All students take a core course in each of the majors. Students in a chosen major will receive one in-major course, and each student will have two elective courses. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of the VGSA and demographics on the career interests in agriculture held by students of the 2004 school. 4 #4 Spear me down, Heaven Seung-Hui Cho* English This thing, my life, all an agony, of Hell of torture .. And years of bludgeoning torment, tiny nuisances. The disgust eyes, dirty frowns, and red fingers pointing at me. Feeling all the patheticness and humiliation. What time is right to abort the null existence and retire from sick lifeblood. And yet feelings-thwarted by sun's beams ready to attack, averted by smiling faces ready to rape- come, a wish to annihilate my self.. If this wasn't true in my plaguing conscious. But Jesus Christ! Another day comes tomorrow, a shade better than present, if I can imagine, a day anew like a new born or an old dying, when nothing is everything and everything is nothing and all is mere shutting of eyelids. Good Christ! Rip me apart, tear me to shrivels, eat me to help me see a better day's worth and salvage this decaying thing from myself. #5 MemberMe: Assistive Device for Mentally Disabled Employees Amanda L. Cowley*, Ka Ying Li Industrial Design Employees with a mental disability are unable to advance in the workplace because they take more time to accumulate and retain knowledge than other employees. This handicap, which requires special attention and communication, creates a social disconnect in the workplace environment. Disabled employees work primarily in places that require a